Friday, March 25, 2011

Yes, Public Employees Are Overpaid

Long story short: the union-backed guy writes a paper concluding that public-employee union members are paid 4% less than private-sector employees.

LaborPains disagrees, finding that PEU members are paid five percent MORE than comparable private-sector folks (without taking into account the benefits...)

In his original analysis released by the Economic Policy Institute, Dr. Keefe found that public employees suffered a 4 percent compensation penalty relative to similar employees in the private sector. Correcting for errors in that analysis, the Center for Union Facts demonstrated that the 4 percent penalty is actually at least a 5 percent premium—a 9 percentage point margin. Keefe and EcPI made an attempt to defend their errors, but—as we’ve shown here—those defenses amount to more rhetoric than substance.

The conclusion of our original piece still stands: public employees are overpaid.

Has to do with some deficiencies in the EPI analysis.
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3 comments:

  1. Anonymous3/25/2011 11:57 AM

    Interesting. The egg-head you support vows that the study conducted by another egg-head is wrong because a certain group (part-time workers) is excluded. Had that group been part of the study, the numbers are in favor of the claim that "Public sector employees are overpaid".

    Yet another egg head says BOTH ARE MISGUIDED.

    blogs.forbes.com/leapfrogging/2011/03/03/wisconsin-public-workers-overpaid-or-underpaid/


    Money quotes--
    "In the debate in Wisconsin (and elsewhere) about the compensation of public employees, no statistical analyses can prove or disprove the appropriate level of compensation either. Available data can neither be used to measure their output nor their ability and willingness to solve problems. Comparisons with the private sector are futile because their compensation is determined by negotiating power that public employees rarely have. Rather, public employees fight to have the government increase this power."

    "Evaluating the statistical features of employees is pointless if outputs cannot be compared."

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dad293/25/2011 12:39 PM

    Available data can neither be used to measure their output nor their ability and willingness to solve problems.

    Easily the most inane and misleading comment made by ANY egghead.

    I suspect this one was soft-boiled.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous3/25/2011 4:50 PM

    Dad29, the author provided context for that assertion. Read for meaning!

    ReplyDelete